Elementary math cannot be taught well without the use of manipulatives. Manipulatives are concrete materials that help students with abstract math concepts. Most classrooms have a supply of physical manipulatives but 2020 changed everything. Thank goodness for virtual manipulatives. They helped many students struggling at home make sense of difficult math concepts. There are virtual manipulatives for basically every elementary math topic, and if you can’t find an interactive website with the manipulatives you need, you can probably find a teacher-created digital product. Hopefully, things will be going back to normal very soon and all students will be back in their classrooms getting the education they deserve. I plan to continue using virtual manipulatives with my students in the classroom. Here are 5 reasons why you should, too.
1. One of the things I don’t love about physical manipulatives is that they are guaranteed to distract at least 4 or 5 students. These students are too busy playing with the manipulatives to actually use them in the math lesson. And the sound of base ten blocks dropping to the floor every two minutes can cause me to start twitching by the end of the lesson. With virtual manipulatives, there is no more playing with them, dropping them, or losing them.
2. You can change the sizes, colors, and shapes of many virtual manipulatives. This works well for differentiation.
3. Many virtual manipulatives give students feedback or hints. They can work independently, without teacher assistance.
4. Teachers often wish their students had manipulatives at home to help them with their homework. Virtual manipulatives allow students to continue making connections between the concrete and abstract from home.
5. Virtual manipulatives are a great resource for teachers to demonstrate concepts. Even if students are working with physical manipulatives, the teacher can demonstrate on the SmartBoard. I used to have students sit in a circle and I would show them the concept by working with the manipulatives in the middle of the circle. I’ve also tried showing them with a document camera. But I have found the best way to demonstrate the use of concrete manipulatives to work out abstract math problems is to do it at the SmartBoard with virtual manipulatives. Students follow along at their seats. It’s much easier for them to see what I’m doing and they are more likely to stay focused.
Where Can You Find Virtual Manipulatives Online?
There are so many interactive websites with virtual manipulatives. Here are some of my favorites:
National Library of Virtual Manipulatives – Tons of amazing virtual manipulatives divided into topics.
Illuminations – Another site with lots of options for virtual manipulatives.
Google Slides Math Manipulatives – One of my favorties. I love the way this is set up. Just click on the manipulative of your choice. There are also links to other sites with virtual manipulatives.
Virtual Manipulatives – Another favorite. Click the links to find lots of support for many topics.
If you’d like to try some of my products with built in virtual manipulatives, click the links. These Google Slides products are great because the activity is built in and the manipulatives are right on the slides. Just click each image to be brought the the product.
